If there is one politician that does not require any introduction as far as Surulere and indeed Lagos politics is concerned, it is the tall, brilliant and dashing looking Honourable Tajudeen Ajide. He is a top APC Lagos chieftain. It is no exaggeration to describe him as one of the most popular politicians in Surulere today.
This is because he has paid his dues. He is the immediate past Executive Chairman of Surulere local government. But his political accomplishments and popularity went beyond Surulere. He operates within the top leadership of the party in Lagos state. He is also enjoys very cordial relationship with President Bola Tinubu. Years ago when he was attacked and left for dead by an unknown assailant, President Tinubu did not abandon him. He stood by him all through his recuperation period. And he will always tell anyone who cares to listen that he will be eternally grateful to Asiwaju. They have maintained a close relationship ever since.
But those who know him closely know that beyond his relationship with the President, he is an incredibly hardworking man. This is why any mention of his name within the political circle in Lagos will always elicit positive reactions. And this is because while he served as chairman of Surulere local government, Hon. Tajudeen Ajide was simply phenomenal. His tenure as administrator of one of Lagos State’s biggest and most cosmopolitan local governments was an incredible success. He broke barriers. He accomplished what was hitherto thought impossible for a local government chairman. Little wonder why he was adjudged, within the Lagos political circle, the most outstanding council chairman in Lagos State. For someone who also had to contend with his own health condition and had to be careful how he stretched himself, this gentleman amazed everyone, including his political rivals, with his remarkable performance.
When he was asked how he was able to meet the needs and expectations of people around him, he said,” To be honest with you, it’s not been easy. I try to do the best I can. I know nobody can possibly please everybody. Many have been impressed with me and they show their appreciation. This is why, some time ago before I left office, while we were inspecting work going on in different sites, I told my aides I wanted us to walk some distance and drop the car. They were surprised and didn’t know what to make of my suggestion. I did that because I wanted to test my own popularity. I wanted to see at close quarters the people’s reaction when they see me, whether they would be excited owing to the work we’ve done or they would just be indifferent. But I was pleasantly surprised at the love and affection they showed me. Some even came to meet me to personally express their appreciation. And they showered me with prayers. Like the woman, a professor, who met me at Census. She said they have not had a chairman who has done the kind of roads I have done for them in that area. When you do good to the people, it will show. I was moved by the outpouring of affection showed me.”
Ask those who know him closely and they will tell you Hon. Tajudeen Ajide does not take no for an answer. He firmly believes there must be a solution to every problem. And he’s an incredible workaholic as well. When he was Chairman of Surulere local government, even on Sundays, he was always physically visiting various project sites, monitoring projects and accessing progress made by contractors. Obviously, this explains why the quality of roads he did in Surulere has been top notch. This reporter took a tour of some of the projects with him and was impressed with what he saw. The roads, mostly done with interlockings, were a beauty to behold, while the nearly completed gigantic Ultra modern hospital in Akerele, when completed, will become the pride of not just Hon. Ajide and the people of Surulere but also of Lagos APC.
Hon Tajudeen Ajide has since taken on more sensitive responsibilities within the Surulere political circuit. He is regarded as one of the political leaders in Surulere owing to his legacies. This is why people respect him. When he speaks, the people listen to him. City People Senior Editor, WALE LAWAL (08037209290) had a brief conversation with this very politically astute gentleman. We wanted to know his thoughts on the state of the nation and what he hinks the President can do as a matter of urgency right now to address the economic hardship being experienced in the country at the moment. Where does he think the problem is coming from? Here is his response:
“Let me be honest with you, most of the personel in President Tinubu’s government have not taken up responsibilities as large and as overwhelming as this before. Many of them are still grappling with the enormity of the task in front of them. I do not envy them at all, this is not a good time to be in government. Governance has never been this tough. So, I think that, apart from the myriads of problems the government met on the ground, particularly the already comatose economy, a lot of the ministers too are yet to hit the ground running. “
“There are also a lot of saboteurs within the government, those who want the government to fail. They are friends of the opposition. But many trust Asiwaju’s abilities to see through things like this. Asiwaju at the beginning operated an open door policy. He needs to continue with that policy because that is the only way he can get diverse opinions and reports of the true situation in the country. He needs to allow more people who are not in his camp or party to have continued access to him. He was doing this at a time and I think he needs to continue in that light.”
But does he think the government is on the right path? Is the President taking the right economic decisions? Hopnourable Ajide replied:
“Anybody who is not being mischievous, who is not playing politics, who is informed, will see that the President is working round the clock to take us out of the woods. He has taking some tough economic decisions that should begin to yield dividends very soon. But, lets be honest with ourselves, the situation on ground is overwhelming. The country’s treasury has been totally and systematically decimated by past administrations such that it will take God himself to comedown from heaven to perform the miracle that Nigerians want Tinubu to perform in eight months. See the way trillions of naira have been printed and stolen, see how they have hoarded millions of dollars, all of these will have had their adverse effect on the nation’s economy.
“But of course, the man on the street does not want to hear all these stories. He is not interested. As far as the masses are concerned, they voted for Asiwaju because they believed he is capable of turning things around. How he does that magic, they don’t want to know, they just need him to get the job done. That’s the mindset of the man on the streets and I can tell you the president is well aware of the frustrations of masses and he is working tirelessly to see that things begin to change for the better in the shortest possible time.”
So, what does he think Mr. President must do right away as a matter of urgency to address the economic hardship people are experiencing at the moment? Honourable Ajide offered his opinion: “Personally, I believe the President is on the right track. His Economic team is top notch. He has implemented the right Economic policies. And I believe the president is listening to the cries of the people. But one of the things I believe he must do quickly is to reshuffle the cabinet. He needs to let some people go and retain those who are already delivering results. He needs to work with people who can work and move at the pace he wants to move and deliver results. I think a lot of the people working with him are completely overwhelmed with the magnitude of work on their hands. And like I said, you can’t blame them, this is such a difficult time to be a part of governance in Nigeria. The misrule of the past years and the brazen and senseless looting of the treasury have finally caught up with us.
